They are nasty: they are itching, they scale, inflame, hurt and really do not look nice – fungal skin and nail infections! And not only the therapy may turn into a test of patience, if it, as it happens so often, requires application for several months. Also diagnosis of infection and identification of the pathogen […]
In its recent epidemiological bulletin (no. 15) the German Robert Koch Institute reports about exceedingly high numbers of hantavirus infections in Germany. In total, 1,713 cases had been registered in 2017 – in the previous year, there were only 298. Indeed, the number of infections fluctuates considerably from year to year. Also 2007, 2010 and 2012 were
When antibodies of class IgE against the peanut proteins Ara h2 and Ara h6 are detected in a patient sample, this finding points with high probability to a clinical peanut allergy. After eating a peanut, the binding between IgE antibodies and their target proteins leads to the activation of mast cells. The activated immune cells
In December 2017, the German Society for Rheumatology (DGRh) published their first guideline for the diagnosis and treatment of ANCA-associated forms of vasculitis (AAV) [1]. The AAV encompass granulomatosis with polyangiitis (GPA, formerly Wegener’s granulomatosis), microscopic polyangiitis (MPA) and eosinophilic granulomatosis with polyangiitis (EGPA, formerly Churg-Strauss syndrome), which all occur with autoantibodies against cytoplasmic antigens
Uromodulin, which was first described as Tamm-Horsfall protein in 1950, is an important biomarker in nephrology. The protein is exclusively expressed in the kidney and is mostly secreted into the renal tubules. A small amount also ends up in the blood circulation. Both uromodulin concentration in urine as well as in serum are used as
